Eugene Myers is working on a novel about the end of the world. Meanwhile, he discovers his daughter doing porn online and his marriage is coming to...
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Feb 20, 2011
rizka
rated it: 
Hufh...Akhirnya... selesai juga baca buku ini.
Rasanya alurnya kok lambat bener ya. Trus penggambaran penulis tentang apocalypse-nya juga ga menggigit. Apa karena baca versi inggrisnya ya, sedang bahasa inggris q dibawah rata-rata? Haha..
Kemaren maksudnya sih biar sekalian belajar bahasa inggris :p
Kalau biasanya membaca novel selesai dalam beberapa jam, saya perlu berhari-hari untuk menyelesaikan buku ini.
Tapi wajar saja, soalnya novel yang dibaca kan juga bahasa indonesia More...
Rasanya alurnya kok lambat bener ya. Trus penggambaran penulis tentang apocalypse-nya juga ga menggigit. Apa karena baca versi inggrisnya ya, sedang bahasa inggris q dibawah rata-rata? Haha..
Kemaren maksudnya sih biar sekalian belajar bahasa inggris :p
Kalau biasanya membaca novel selesai dalam beberapa jam, saya perlu berhari-hari untuk menyelesaikan buku ini.
Tapi wajar saja, soalnya novel yang dibaca kan juga bahasa indonesia More...
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May 22, 2011
Ron
rated it: 
As I read Henry Baum's The American Book of the Dead, I couldn't help but wonder if it was science fiction, speculative fiction, fantasy, dystopian fiction, or some other kind of non-realistic fiction. Early on, the narrator insists it's none of the above. Ultimately, I decided there was no need to answer the question.
For me, the most intriguing characters in this story are Charles Winchell, the President of the United States, his controlling (or not) father Benjamin, and the Presiden More...
For me, the most intriguing characters in this story are Charles Winchell, the President of the United States, his controlling (or not) father Benjamin, and the Presiden More...
Nov 26, 2010
D. L.
rated it:
This book developed and changed as it went on, in ways that kept me thoroughly engaged. Intelligent and thoughtful, while at the same becoming increasingly surreal and worthy of a Dali painting. SF meets some very strange headspaces here. I like that kind of thing.
We start with a father discovering his daughter starring on a porn site, then take off into a political and psychological voyage through a World War started by a fundamentalist president whose father is the archetype of all More...
We start with a father discovering his daughter starring on a porn site, then take off into a political and psychological voyage through a World War started by a fundamentalist president whose father is the archetype of all More...
Aug 03, 2011
Pam
rated it: 
I really did have to push myself to finish this book, and when I finally, at long last, got through it, I felt cheated. The ending, in my opinion, jumps the shark. Basically, this guy, Eugene Myers, writes a book that is somehow published before he finishes it.
I didn't like the narrator at all. He came across as self-serving and egotistical. Oh, and the author needs to go look up the word "evolve" in a dictionary. Any old dictionary will do. Cause he misused that word p More...
I didn't like the narrator at all. He came across as self-serving and egotistical. Oh, and the author needs to go look up the word "evolve" in a dictionary. Any old dictionary will do. Cause he misused that word p More...
Apr 18, 2010
Beata
rated it: 
One of the most unique approaches to storytelling I've ever come across! It's a book about that same book, which already has been written, but the author does not remember actually writing it.... Was it written in the past or in the future? Was it written at all? It could have been a whole lot more confusing if it weren't for the fact that the book is about an apocalyptic event, which feels uncomfortably likely to happen (felt a whole lot more likely when Bush was still president, but who kn
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Mar 14, 2010
Cheryl
rated it:
The year was 2020. Except as I write this the year is 2008.
Don’t try to make any sense out that, by the end you will understand, but for now the first person narrator/author of the book is just letting you know that he basically wrote a premonition, not a novel. Now I certainly don’t mind a little Nostradamus, even if the narrator claims it’s merely Cliff’s Notes from the future, and after the “end is near” prologue, we move into a more traditional narrative and a more linear timelin More...
Don’t try to make any sense out that, by the end you will understand, but for now the first person narrator/author of the book is just letting you know that he basically wrote a premonition, not a novel. Now I certainly don’t mind a little Nostradamus, even if the narrator claims it’s merely Cliff’s Notes from the future, and after the “end is near” prologue, we move into a more traditional narrative and a more linear timelin More...
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Mar 05, 2011
Todd
rated it:
Henry goes to great lengths to depict a future that is not just possible, but probable, building it up on a stage that’s meant to fall. The beauty of it is, by the time I got to the end, I wanted it to fall. I wanted the apocalypse to happen. Not because of President Winchell’s twisted dogma, but because of the implications of what might happen thereafter: That humanity, when facing the abyss, will awaken to a greater consciousness and progress, rather than destroy itself. The book gets a lit
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Dec 04, 2010
Lenox
rated it:
goddamn this is an excellent book.
this story is dark, anti-establishment, and creepy and yet it sticks with me.
anytime someone asks me for a recommendation to read something interesting and different--regardless of genre--i always find myself suggesting they read TABD. awesome.
i'm terrible at writing book reviews, but i can rate this book at the top of my lists.
this story is dark, anti-establishment, and creepy and yet it sticks with me.
anytime someone asks me for a recommendation to read something interesting and different--regardless of genre--i always find myself suggesting they read TABD. awesome.
i'm terrible at writing book reviews, but i can rate this book at the top of my lists.
Aug 22, 2010
John
rated it: 
Book started off very promising with interesting premise - a writer writing about the apocalypse as if it has already happened although he is actually writing it in advance.
About a third of the way through it degenerates badly as the author seems to be in an incredible rush to get things done. The author also gets away from scenes and starts explaining everything instead.
Very disappointing.
About a third of the way through it degenerates badly as the author seems to be in an incredible rush to get things done. The author also gets away from scenes and starts explaining everything instead.
Very disappointing.
Jul 25, 2011
Sift
rated it:
While I appreciated the quality of the writing and the originality of the story, I couldn't really get in to this book. Don't get me wrong, I can tell that many many others will enjoy The American Book of the Dead immensely, but it's one of those books that just isn't for me. (Henry Baum has excellent company where this is concerned; many bestsellers fall in to this category.)
I think this book would be perfect for those who enjoy heavily philosophical sci-fi and for those who don't nec More...
I think this book would be perfect for those who enjoy heavily philosophical sci-fi and for those who don't nec More...
Feb 23, 2011
Jordi
rated it:
Más que cargarse la cuarta pared, se las carga todas. Es un libro raro, muy raro. No sé por dónde pillarlo.
Se lee fácil y rápido, pero no tiene mucha cohesión que digamos: parece que el autor no sabía muy bien a dónde iba y la trama se desarrolla a bandazos.
Poco más que decir, se puede descargar de feedbooks.com
Se lee fácil y rápido, pero no tiene mucha cohesión que digamos: parece que el autor no sabía muy bien a dónde iba y la trama se desarrolla a bandazos.
Poco más que decir, se puede descargar de feedbooks.com
Sep 17, 2011
Shauna
rated it:
I really liked this book. It was hard to understand at the beginning, but once I got into it it got really interesting. It's kind of a mind bender, and I had to re-read the beginning after I finished it.
Jun 22, 2011
I reviewed this book for Sift Book Reviews. I don't want to to skew the ratings by posting twice, but for the review you can go here: http://www.siftreviews.com/2011/06/ameri...
Jul 21, 2011
kent
rated it:
If you can make sense of the prologue you will enjoy this time twisting post/pre apocalyptic story, I actually think this story would do fantastic as a film.
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Jan 16, 2012
Wendy
rated it:
I couldn't get a groove going with this book. The narrator seemed smug, his family self absorbed, and his life so complicated it made me itch. I had to delete it from my Kindle.
Nov 02, 2011
Sandra
rated it:
I got this as a kindle freebie and I enjoyed it. Its a strange book but it kept my interest.
Mar 26, 2011
Cindy
rated it:
Interesting. Very interesting. I finished this last night and waited until almost a day later to review this because of the ending. At first I was annoyed, saying "Are you kidding me?" Now, thinking about it, I shake my head and laugh, because how else could it end?
I loved this book: The unique way it was written, the main character, Eugene with his view of the world, and how easily worldwide destruction could occur and is realistic!
This one will stick with More...
I loved this book: The unique way it was written, the main character, Eugene with his view of the world, and how easily worldwide destruction could occur and is realistic!
This one will stick with More...
Mar 08, 2011
Moxie
rated it:
Apocalyptic lit in the tradition of Wilson & Shea's Illuminatus!, TABOTD explores the double-edged roles that religious faith and warfare play in the human drama. An impressive blend of conspiracy theory, satire, philosophical musings, and intense mindfuckery.
Dec 30, 2011
Alex
rated it:
The American Book of the Dead, BackwordBooks.com
By Henry Baum
Many writers have sailed off on the premise of a writer writing a book which turns out to be the book written—the one that you’re holding in your hands (in this case, The American Book of the Dead). Fiction’s shores are littered with these wrecks of self-indulgence. Henry Baum, who nests more than a few matryoshka dolls inside the concept, pulls it off mostly, in this cleverly plotted, and at times demanding, book.
By Henry Baum
Many writers have sailed off on the premise of a writer writing a book which turns out to be the book written—the one that you’re holding in your hands (in this case, The American Book of the Dead). Fiction’s shores are littered with these wrecks of self-indulgence. Henry Baum, who nests more than a few matryoshka dolls inside the concept, pulls it off mostly, in this cleverly plotted, and at times demanding, book.
Feb 10, 2012
Feb 09, 2012
Feb 05, 2012
